Apr 5, 2023

PHS announces new board members

The Pennsylvania Horticultural Society (PHS) announced that six new supporters have joined PHS’s board of directors; their terms began during the first quarter of 2023.

“The PHS team is thrilled to welcome these new board members, some of whom have worked with PHS for many years and in various capacities. Their unique business acumen and life experiences are essential to help guide PHS on its continued work to improve health and well-being using gardening and horticulture,” said Matt Rader, president of the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society.

Rachael Ferraro is a vice president and private advisor with Rockefeller Capital Management. Ferraro focuses on providing investment advice to ultra-high-net-worth families, next-generation family members, and endowments & foundations. Prior to joining Rockefeller, Ferraro was an investment specialist with J.P. Morgan Private Bank, where she developed and implemented custom portfolio solutions across asset classes. Prior to J.P. Morgan, Ferraro worked at PwC in their asset management practice where she earned her CPA license.

Ferraro graduated with honors from the Villanova School of Business with a B.S. degree in accounting and marketing and a minor in business law. Ferraro also holds her FINRA Series 7 and 63 licenses. She has served on the PHS Strategic Oversight Committee since 2020.

David A. Fleischner is an executive vice president and board member at Asplundh Tree Expert, LLC. Fleischner joined the company in 1998 and spent nine years working in a field training program before returning to the corporate office in Philadelphia. During his 25 years at Asplundh, he has been involved in many aspects of the vegetation management, utility infrastructure, and landscape businesses across the United States and foreign operations.

In addition to joining the PHS Board in 2023, Fleischner is a trustee of The Barnes Foundation and a member of the board of St. Paul’s School in Concord, New Hampshire. He has also served in board leadership capacities for several industry associations during his career. In the Philadelphia area, Fleischner and his family support many civic and charitable organizations, including Mural Arts Philadelphia, MANNA, and the Philadelphia Museum of Art.

Jennifer Jones Gilliam actively works to address the inequities that exist as a result of under-resourced communities. A graduate of Pennsylvania State University, she was employed with the PA Department of Public Welfare for 35 years, retiring as the SE regional administrative law judge supervisor. Gilliam is the founder and manager of the House of Second Chances Clothing Boutique, which provides free clothing to those in need. She serves on the trustee board at Pinn Memorial Baptist Church and on the board at Pinn Gardens Senior Apartments. Gilliam is a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Inc., a mother of two and a grandmother of two.

Patricia Owens is a senior banker at J.P. Morgan Private Bank in the Mid-Atlantic Region, where she and her team advise high-net-worth families, private business owners, and foundations on wealth management strategies, including portfolio construction, estate planning, credit, and tax-efficient investment management. She joined the Philadelphia office in 2012. Prior to her arrival, Owens was president and CEO of Sage Hill Partners, a strategy consulting firm, and brings more than 20 years of business experience to her role. She also served as chief strategy officer at Decision Strategies International and held various executive positions with Goldman Sachs, SEI Investments, Bryn Mawr Trust Company and PNC Bank.

Owens was named one of “Pennsylvania’s Best 50 Women in Business” by the state’s Department of Community & Economic Development and was also awarded the prestigious “Woman of Distinction” designation by the Philadelphia Business Journal. She currently serves on the board of Council for Relationships and the Philadelphia Zoo. Owens earned her bachelor of arts in english from Princeton University, where she was awarded All-American honors in both field hockey and lacrosse. She graduated from Harvard University with a master of business administration and is currently completing coursework for a license in marriage and family therapy.

Laura Pratt Gregg is a longtime Philadelphia Flower Show volunteer and avid gardener, having first exhibited at the Flower Show in 1984. She graduated from Boston University in 1968 with a bachelor of arts in english literature. She has served as Shipley Secret Gardens’ chairman, Shipley School Christmas Shop chairman, and several national committees of The Garden Club of America, and currently serves as the Scholarship Committee Representative for Pennsylvania and Delaware. Gregg is presently a member of The Garden Workers, The Garden Club of America and The Garden Club of Bala Cynwyd, National Garden Clubs, Federation of Pennsylvania, and also leads the Philadelphia Flower Show Arrangement Competitive Classes Judges as the chairman. In addition to spending time with her five children, family, and dog, Gregg enjoys friends, cooking, sailing, gardening, flower arranging, and needlework.

Margaret Sadler is a former global human resource executive with a history of active involvement in community and civic organizations. She is a past chair of the board of the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society. Sadler is currently serving as trustee and treasurer of the Woodmere Art Museum in Chestnut Hill. She is on the advisory board of WIL, an organization supporting global self-sufficiency. In her East Falls community, Sadler is past president of the Friends of Falls of Schuylkill Library and active in the East Falls Village.

Sadler consults pro bono with not-for-profit organizations that financially cannot employ professional services in the areas of board development and training, succession planning, and organizational assessment. Her clients range from a consortium of college presidents to a local ministry serving the homeless. In the recent past, she served as a board member of the Forum of Executive Women; the board of the Women’s Law Project serving as governance chair; the George S. Pepper Society Council of the Philadelphia Library, and a trustee of the Maxwell Mansion Museum in Germantown. She spent 20 years with FMC Corporation, heading worldwide human resources for its billion-dollar-plus agricultural business in 30 countries. She has expertise in Brazil, Western Europe, and throughout Asia. Prior to FMC, she spent 10 years as vice president of human resources and marketing communications for an ITT Corporation subsidiary in St. Paul, Minnesota, where she also served two terms as chair of the Civil Service Commission and earned her master gardener designation. She holds a bachelor’s from Youngstown State University.